Don’t Blame The Rookies
August 29th, 2015
Bucs rookie LT Donovan Smith blocks for fellow rookie QB Jameis Winston in tonight’s loss to Browns. Photo courtesy of Buccaneers.com.
Yes, the Bucs’ offensive line looked not much different than last year’s offensive line tonight. In a word, porous.
The only thing different was three starters up front were not on the roster last year; two of them — left tackle Donovan Smith and right guard Ali Marpet — are rookies.
So naturally, fans freaked out how the rookies are going to get fellow rookie quarterback, America’s Quarterback, Jameis Winston, maimed.
Well, two non-rookies on the offensive line rallied to the defense of the rookies, and both played right tackle tonight.
Reid Fragel, who started at right tackle, and Gosder Cherilus, who tonight played second banana, seemed a bit irked when a reporter kept asking if it was the rookies who were the proverbial crack in the dam.
“No, I don’t think it has anything to do with the rookies,” Fragel said. “I think we have a great group of guys. We just have to start turning things around quicker. We had a short week, but that is no excuse. We have to communicate more as a group.”
Cherilus was equally adamant.
“I don’t think you can just go put everything on rookies,” Cherilus said. “We, as a team, didn’t play well. We have to go back and watch the film and do the things Lovie asks us to do and go out and play.”
Just like how most reasonable people expect Jameis to have a roller coaster of a season because he is a rookie, so too will Smith and Marpet. They are rookies. This is what rookies do.
Joe may have missed it, but Joe doesn’t remember anyone suggesting Smith and Marpet are the second-coming of Anthony Munoz and John Hannah, respectively.
August 29th, 2015 at 11:13 pm
Is it just me- or does the Line play better, when our backup centers are playing.
The rookies played just like the the Vets tonight. Pretty badly.
August 29th, 2015 at 11:15 pm
It’s always the same BS excuses for poor….just wrapped up in another
Losing and bad game play reassures us how much still needs to be done
August 29th, 2015 at 11:23 pm
I’m still not wavering from my 4-6 wins prediction, but now I’m stuck in the middle at 5. I think they go 5-11.
August 29th, 2015 at 11:24 pm
EDS SUCKS
August 29th, 2015 at 11:32 pm
Man.. I am so sick of this team coming out flat and unprepared. I know its preseason but this is the same old **** we’ve seen for years.
I don’t see how this team is going to win more than 4 games. Jameis isn’t going to make it to midseason with that offensive line.
August 29th, 2015 at 11:43 pm
Until they prove otherwise, they are what we thought they were! Between 2-14 & 6-10. Learning year for the young ‘uns and hopefully the last for the veteran dead weight, ahem, Mankins, Smith, et al.
August 29th, 2015 at 11:43 pm
We learn from our (fill in the blank)
If you said mistakes…ding..ding..ding a winner. That int of Fameis will TEACH him. I had to watch highlights on the NFL Net to see any of this. In other games I watched Kirk Cousins toss a swing pass right into Suggs hands for a truly rookie looking int. Isn’t this Cousin’s 3rd year.
The best place to learn from these mistakes is (fill in the blank)
If you said pre season again…ding..ding..ding..a winner. If we lose the next game to Miami we equal our record from last year..even with all the turnover…even with a rookie QB and two lineman…even with a rookie MLB.
Climb back off the bridge you don’t need to jump. We’re in for a wild exciting ride. We go 4-4 the first half and 6-2 the second. 10-6 baby but hang on to the Maalox….it could test our nerve. And clearly some of you have lost that just three games into a freaking pre season.
August 29th, 2015 at 11:44 pm
jameis had a bad ankle when we drafted him. Now it’s still bad. He cant run from anything. Nor could leftwich
August 29th, 2015 at 11:48 pm
Guess what guys like st Pete just said- this just provided Jamie’s with some experience against the 3-4 and a decent one at that- I see this as a good experience although I don’t know WTF happened to special teams and the defense vs mccown
August 30th, 2015 at 12:03 am
Hey Joe America’s Quarterback needs some American size offensive line to protect him. I know is the preseason dude, but if this is how our offensive line is going to perform, I will give your America ‘s Quarterback some very low chance on achieving his Buccaneer American Dream.
August 30th, 2015 at 12:11 am
2 things I hate about this team. We rarely play with fire in our belly and Evan Smith. We play like we don’t give a crap 95% of the time and EDS just sucks AND seems to be a real jerk as well.
August 30th, 2015 at 12:17 am
Jamies looked good when the O-Line blocked well
August 30th, 2015 at 12:22 am
We should trade lovie to Michigan for Harbaugh.
August 30th, 2015 at 12:29 am
so glad we dumped Penn and Zuttah. drafted four questionable Oline, traded for two and signed a few oline also…seriously this is the worst team we have had since the early 90’s. I liked Mariota over Winston but that’s not fair, because the awful job by coaches and front office neither can really develop and grown with this crew in front of them. sad and worried how bad this season might be…..however we have a MUCH stronger running game this year and Doug Martin is AWESOME. He may be the best thing we have in 2015.
August 30th, 2015 at 12:36 am
So everyone is choosing to ignore how bad the special teams group is playing. 2 missed FGs, punt returned for TD, no return yards for ourselves. They’re not even taking the ball out the end zone prob scared to make a mistake. That’s how the bucs play, scared to make a mistake.
Finally, if ASJ can block then I’m Dan Bilzerian.
August 30th, 2015 at 12:57 am
db55 dan blizzeran awesome…lovie should bring him in and co to spark the bucs but he aint about loosers
August 30th, 2015 at 1:08 am
It wasn’t all the offensive line fault, the QB has to make the calls to pickup a blitz. I still say that Dirk Koetter didn’t want to show his hand during preseason. And it didn’t help that we played Monday night and the Browns haven’t played since Thursday night. We will be fine this season, just wait until the season start. Let’s go get this NFC South. GO BUCS
August 30th, 2015 at 1:23 am
I say the play calling sucked, what happened to the short passes to get in rhytm like in bengals game.
August 30th, 2015 at 2:19 am
I’m just gonna say seeing McCown gettung clobbered made me happy.
August 30th, 2015 at 2:40 am
I haven’t seen the game yet as I live in North Carolina, saw some highlights – good and bad – jumped on JBF to get a pulse on my Bucs… and all I get from you guys is “cicken little”. One thing I’m feeling from most Bucs fans on here is a very bipolar love of the Bucs. Last week we had our way with Cincy, and we’re on top of the world, this week Cleveland brings it to us and we’re bottom feeders again… I love the Bucs just as much as anyone on here and have suffered just as much these last few seasons and what I think is if we don’t have enough patience to allow a coach and staff more than 2 years to prove anything than we are going to remain bottom feeders. Right now, I’m feeling like 1996, we’ve got some really kick ass players in place and some really great coaches to make it happen… We just have to chill out a little and watch them start to gell. It’s going to happen, I’m telling you!
August 30th, 2015 at 3:08 am
The only difference I’m hoping for is that this group snags more than 1 Superbowl, we should’ve had at least 2 rings and maybe even 3 rings out of the previous Buc champions… If our front office/coaching staff play their cards right (so far, I’m impressed) then we should be able to rock the NFL the next few seasons and hopefully more!
August 30th, 2015 at 4:59 am
No you can’t blame the rookies because they got better as the game went on. I blame the “savvy vets” of the team like Evan Smith , Chris Conte, the injuries of a lot of favorites to make the roster like Fat, Bell, and now Clay. Mike Evans not playing. The defense that continues to put lesser talent in the starting lineup like Swearinger over Mcdougald, Lansanah over Carter, and waiting on Jaquies Smith to return over of just letting Melton start. Why did they sign guys to nice money too if they are not going to start fulltime where they’re comfortable at. Oh now they do it more tim ed with Fragel over Cherilus.
August 30th, 2015 at 6:18 am
Coaching???????????????????????????????????????????????????
or lack thereof.
Leslie F. needs to go.
August 30th, 2015 at 6:36 am
I think JBF can copy the posts here and paste them every week during the season. It will save us fans the time and effort. This team sucks. Will suck for several more years before approaching mediocrity. It is what it is.
August 30th, 2015 at 8:23 am
I did 2 things last night after the 1st quarter, I alerted by friends in law enforcement and the emergency rooms to be prepared for a spite in suicide attempts and alcohol poisonings, and I put in a buy order for pharmaceutical stocks for firt thing Monday A.M.
Rookies are going to play like rookies and rebuilding is painful. Deal with it.
August 30th, 2015 at 8:51 am
DB55 brings up a good point in that the special teams stunk it up again. Last season O’Dea’s boys cost the Bucs a couple of games which in retrospect turned out to be a good thing with the Bucs drafting 1st instead of 5th or 6th with 4 or so wins….. This year it is just sad to see as it illustrates one of two things (and possibly both): Coach O’Dea is simply inept and should have been shown the door with Marcus Arroyo or the Bucs simply are so thin on talent that the special teams are going to struggle again this year no matter who coaches them up and that reflects poorly on Lovie and the GM who pretty much built this year’s roster but can not seem to get anything positive out of the Special Teams…. This is one unit that has to show improvement or Lovie will lose his job as I doubt if he can afford debacles this season like he did last year in the Bucs opener at home vs St Louis (or the losses to Cincy and Minnesota) where simply average special teams play would have got the Bucs a W….
August 30th, 2015 at 8:59 am
As someone pointed out – browns had 8 days to practice, rest, prepare and came in clearly fired up. Bucs had 4 days and came out flat – just like the Bengals did last week. Bucs are as good as the played on MNF and aren’t as bad as we saw last night.
Also – you guys that jump on here when the Bucs play bad to say you were right about this or that and how the Bucs will suck – you show your immaturity and lack of class. Real men don’t self gloat. Never shine your own light – be humble and show you maturity – and people will shine your light for you.
August 30th, 2015 at 9:02 am
sorry – aren’t as gosod as the played on MNF
August 30th, 2015 at 9:04 am
The bucs team today is terrible and they have done nothing to prove that they are a 4-6 win team with a hc that seems oblivious to a terrible OL a terrible special teams unit… lovie is too loyal ans it will cost him his job
August 30th, 2015 at 9:11 am
We should have drafted Teddy last year.
August 30th, 2015 at 10:28 am
Looks like the only players they have on this team are unwanted players from other teams and draft picks from someone that couldn’t pick there nose, I’m looking at the buc’s to go 3 wins and 13 slap downs and the exit of Lovie Smith, BY –BY
August 30th, 2015 at 11:13 am
Week 6.
That’s when you can expect the offensive line to be truly doing well. To expect more before then is empty dreams.
August 30th, 2015 at 11:14 am
CAN’T FIX IT = Real Racist?
August 30th, 2015 at 11:38 am
@DB55
So everyone is choosing to ignore how bad the special teams group is playing.
Not me DB55. I’m the blog optimist but I absolutely share your concern here.
Is this on Kevin O’Dea or are they still searching for the final dozen players and experimenting with special teams?
Whatever I’m with you this is my major concern right now…even greater than the OL. Koenen and Barth both have veteran experience and simply need to return to their historic norms. Hopefully that part works out but right now we SUCKKK on special teams.
@NCFloidiot
BIPOLAR FANS!!! Great description. I love it.
August 30th, 2015 at 1:01 pm
Can people stop complaining about JW being a little slow and not a runner. Since when has that ever mattered in the history of the NFL.?
Manning, Brady, rivers, Aikman etc… Etc… Etc…
Read the defense, have pocket presence, make the throw.
That’s it. That is all that is needed and JW has those things, just needs the OLine to step it up like last week.
August 30th, 2015 at 2:07 pm
I say::: let’s trade JW for MM
August 30th, 2015 at 3:38 pm
Hah, BBM – unfortunately Tennessee has become quite attached to MM.
Besides there is no sweetness in converting low-information football types to the Mariota bandwagon – AFTER drafting the dropback QB and his offensive line of the future. You guys are going to have to stop listening to the @joes, woody’s and EYE-RAH’s long enough to consider some of this on your own.
Kid Fameis will be fine – this may actually help him (and his coaches) to understand it might be better to sit kid Fameis until the line can do more than throw “LOOKOUT” blocks – nothing will be learned by your high priced dropback QB if he’s laying on his back with his face mask smashed in backwards, or worse, demonstrating how knees CAN be bent backwards by 3 large men moving at warp speed, with malice aforethought…
Now, about young Fameis and the word “panic” the next time this kid tells the fans NOT TO PANIC…I want him to remember this press conference where he admitted to taking panic sacks (ironically sweet to me since many of your alleged Mariota committed too many of those).
I think young jameis just figured out why older, smarter, FANS…panicked at the FIRST hint of understanding just how BAD an offensive line they were putting in front of a suddenly thin & slow-looking, rookie QB.
Congratulations kid fameis, you’re thinking has improved so quickly, you’re now ONLY two football games behind the fans. Welcome to the world of REAL football – your ACC days are over – you’re playing defenses that will make PRIDE in tattooing their number on your chest.
Your tendency to correct your first-half mistakes, by going all gunslinger, isn’t going to work here. You’re going to have to understand that you ARE NOT EXPECTED TO DO IT ALL. You MUST LEARN to play within the system, with patience…or that tendency/ability you have to “forget” mistakes quickly will come back to haunt you.
For what it’s worth, I’m not panicking – I’m hoping kid fameis just learned a HUGE lesson. Tampa fans don’t need to be schooled by a schoolboy.
I’m encouraged that he’s learning defenses are even faster than his last college game – and that’s a scary thought – to him.